Change management and organizational performance of selected transport companies in Enugu State

The rate at which competition in the transport industry in Nigeria is moving is at a very high pace, due to changes in technology, product and services, customer taste among others. This had made change management experts to seriously emphasize on the importance of establishing organizations readiness for change and have deviced numerous strategies for creating it, because successful management of change is essential to any organization to survive in the present turbulent highly competitive and continuously developing business environment. Change management is a planned tool for the transition of individuals, groups and organizations from existing state to a required further state. However, managing a change process is as crucial as change itself. This study empirically examines change management and its effect on organizational performance of selected transport companies in Enugu State. The study used a total number of 300 staff of the selected transport companies which is randomly selected from staff population of 1,200. Three hypotheses were designed to guide the study and data collected for the study were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance. The result showed that changes in technology has a significant effect on performance and that changes in customer satisfaction has a significant effect on customer's patronage. The result also revealed that changes in management cum leadership has a significant effect on employees" performance. Based on the findings of the study it was recommended that Nigeria and Enugu state in particular should be pro-active to changes in such a competitive environment, so as to experience smooth implementation of such changes. The study therefore, concludes that nothing remains constant in the world of business as change. Hence, change managers should therefore, successfully manage the human side of change in order to avoid resistance to change by using the appropriate change strategies, thus enhancing overall performance of the industry.